Midlife crisis

A midlife crisis is a transition of identity and self-confidence that can occur in middle-aged individuals, typically 35 to 55 years old.[1][2][3] The phenomenon is described as a psychological crisis brought about by events that highlight a person's growing age, inevitable mortality, and possibly lack of accomplishments in life. This may produce feelings of intense depression, remorse, and high levels of anxiety, or the desire to achieve youthfulness or make drastic changes to their current lifestyle or feel the wish to change past decisions and events.

For the Faith No More song, see Midlife Crisis.

The term was coined by Elliott Jaques in 1965. More modern research has shown this is not a phase that most middle-aged people actually experience, and some have questioned the existence of this phenomenon.

Crisis vs. stressors

Academic research since the 1980s rejects the notion of mid-life crisis as a phase that most adults go through. Personality type and a history of psychological crisis are believed to predispose some people to this "traditional" midlife crisis.[4][5] People going through this suffer a variety of symptoms and exhibit a disparate range of behaviors.

It is important to understand the difference between a mid-life crisis and a mid-life stressor. Mid-life is the time from years 45–64[3][1][2] where a person is often evaluating his or her own life. However, many mid-life stressors are often labeled as a mid-life crisis. Day-to-day stressors are likely to add up and be thought of as a crisis, but in reality, it is simply an "overload".[4] Both women and men often experience multiple stressors because of their simultaneous roles as spouses, parents, employees, children, etc.

Many middle-aged adults experience major life events that can cause a period of psychological stress or depression, such as the death of a loved one, or a career setback. However, those events could have happened earlier or later in life, making them a "crisis," but not necessarily a mid-life one. In the same study, 15% of middle-aged adults experienced this type of midlife turmoil. Being of a lower educational status is related to feeling stressors to a greater degree than those of a higher education level during midlife.

Studies indicate that some cultures may be more sensitive to this phenomenon than others; one study found that there is little evidence that people undergo midlife crises in Japanese and Indian cultures, raising the question of whether a mid-life crisis is mainly a cultural construct. The authors hypothesized that the "culture of youth" in Western societies accounts for the popularity of the mid-life crisis concept there.

Researchers have found that mid-life is often a time for reflection and reassessment, but this is not always accompanied by the psychological upheaval popularly associated with "mid-life crisis."[6] Those who made career or jobs changes early in life were less likely to experience a crisis in midlife.[7][8]

Occurrence

The condition may occur from the ages of 45–64.[1][2] Mid-life crises last about 3–10 years in men and 2–5 years in women. A mid-life crisis could be caused by aging itself, or aging in combination with changes, problems, or regrets over:

  • work or career (or lack of them)
  • spousal relationships (or lack of them)
  • maturation of children (or lack of children)
  • aging or death of parents
  • physical changes associated with aging

Mid-life crisis can affect men and women differently because their stressors differ. An American cultural stereotype of a man going through a midlife crisis may include the purchase of a luxury item such as an exotic car, or seeking intimacy with a younger woman. Some men seek younger women who are able to procreate, not necessarily with an intention to produce offspring.[9] A man's midlife crisis is more likely to be caused by work issues,[5] a woman's crisis by personal evaluations of their roles. Even though there are differences between why men and women go through a midlife crisis, the emotions they both encounter can be intense.

One of the main characteristics of a mid-life crisis perspective, is one assumes that their mid-life is about to be eventful, usually in a negative way, and potentially stressful. Psychologist Oliver Robinson's research characterizes each decade of life by describing frequent occurrences or situations particular to those age periods. He describes that a crisis can begin in a person's early 20s, when they usually try to map out their whole life. Moreover, the later age period, between 50 and 60, may be a time of illness or even the thought of death. Such a deadline may convince a middle-aged person that their life needs to be lived as expected.[8]

Individuals experiencing a mid-life crisis may feel:[10]

  • a deep sense of remorse for goals that have not been accomplished
  • a fear of humiliation among more successful colleagues
  • longing to achieve a feeling of youthfulness
  • need to spend more time alone or with certain peers
  • a heightened sense of their sexuality or lack of it
  • ennui, confusion, resentment or anger due to their discontent with their marital, work, health, economic, or social status
  • ambition to right the missteps they feel they have taken early in life[11]

Treatment and prevention

Physical changes that commonly occur during these years are weight gain, wrinkles, sagging skin, hair loss.[12][6][13][14][8] Regular exercise and maintenance of a nutritious diet may help to sustain one's physical and mental health during these years of transition.

Significant changes made early in life may prevent one from having a mid-life crisis. An example supporting such a theory can be derived from the research conducted by Dr. Susan Krauss Whitbourne. People who changed jobs before their midlife years had a greater sense of generativity when they reached mid-life. They also experienced a greater sense of motivation to deviate from stagnation and a desire to help the younger generation thrive. This is a psychological stage proposed by Erik Erikson that describes a normal stage adults go through during their mid-life years.[15]

Theoretical basis

The notion of the mid-life crisis began with followers of Sigmund Freud, who thought that during middle age everyone’s thoughts were driven by the fear of impending death.[16] Although mid-life crisis has lately received more attention in popular culture than serious research, there are some theoretical constructs supporting the notion. Jungian theory holds that mid-life is key to individuation, a process of self-actualization and self-awareness that contains many potential paradoxes.[17] Although Carl Jung did not describe midlife crisis per se, the mid-life integration of thinking, sensation, feeling, and intuition that he describes could, it seems, lead to confusion about one's life and goals.

Erik Erikson's life stage of generativity versus stagnation also coincides with the idea of a mid-life crisis. Erikson believed that in this stage adults begin to understand the pressure of being committed to improving the lives of generations to come. In this stage a person realizes the inevitability of mortality and the virtue of this stage is the creating of a better world for future generations in order for the human race to grow. Stagnation is the lack of psychological movement or growth. Instead of helping the community a person is barely able to help their own family. Those who experience stagnation do not invest in the growth of themselves or others.[18]

Some psychologists believe men's mid-life crisis is a psychological reaction to the imminent menopause and end of reproductive career of their spouses.[19] Their genes may be influencing men to be more attracted to reproductive women, and less attached to their non-reproductive spouses.

Criticism

Some people have challenged the existence of mid-life crises altogether. One study found that 23% of participants had what they called a "midlife crisis," but in digging deeper, only one-third of those—8% of the total—said the crisis was associated with awareness of aging.[4][20]

The balance (15% of those surveyed) had experienced major life experiences or transitions such as divorce or loss of a job in middle age and described them as "midlife crisis". While there is no doubt these events can be traumatic—the associated grief reactions can be indistinguishable from depression.[4]

Costa and McCrae (1980) found little evidence for an increase in neuroticism in midlife. While they did find that some people were likely to experience such crises, these individuals were likely to experience crises in their 20s and 30s, and these experiences were not unique to midlife. Robinson, Rosenberg, and Farrell (1999) re-interviewed (500) men. Looking back over their midlife period, it became evident that while not necessarily entailing crisis, it was a time for re-evaluation.

Wrapping up their review of men's mid-life crisis, Alwin and Levenson wrote that "... Given the bulk of the data, it is likely that, for most men, mid-life is a time of achievement and satisfaction. For a certain proportion of men, however, the passage is not at all smooth." They found a similar pattern when they reviewed research on what are commonly thought to be triggers for women's mid-life crisis: menopause, children leaving home, the "sandwich" of caring for both parents and children. Most women navigated those periods without a traumatic psychological "crisis".

The enduring popularity of the mid-life crisis concept may be explained by another finding by Robinson et al. As Alwin and Levenson summarize: "... younger men, now middle-aged Baby Boomers, used the term "midlife crisis" to describe nearly any setback, either in their career or family life."

Levenson researched the possible existence of a midlife crisis and its implications. Whereas Levenson (1978) found that 80% of middle-aged participants had a crisis, and Ciernia (1985) reported that 70% of men in midlife said they had a crisis (Shek, 1996) others could not replicate those findings including Shek (1996), Kruger (1994), McCrae and Costa (1990). The debate of whether or not there is a midlife crisis is being answered through recent research that attempts to balance such factors as response bias and experimenter effects in order to establish internal validity. The above mentioned research does not support Levenson's model of a single age in the middle years that is a designated time of transition and potential "crisis". Instead, changes in personality can occur throughout the adult years with no peak in general distress or psychosocial crisis.[21]

Many view mid-life as a negative, but in reality many experience this time positively. If looked at as a time of personal growth, the experience can be greatly beneficial and rewarding. If treated as a transitional phase,[6] psychologists believe the initial experience may be difficult and confusing but as time passes it becomes an experience of self growth and self-realization.[6][22][23]

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See also

Notes
  1. "Ntpu.edu.tw" (PDF).
  2. "Psych.stanford.edu" (PDF).
  3. "Definition of MIDDLE AGE". www.merriam-webster.com.
  4. Sliwinski, Martin J.; Almeida, David M.; Smyth, Joshua; Stawski, Robert S. (1 December 2009). "Intraindividual change and variability in daily stress processes: Findings from two measurement-burst diary studies". Psychol Aging. 24 (4): 828–840. doi:10.1037/a0017925. PMC 2857711. PMID 20025399.
  5. Sheehy, Gail (1996). New Passages: Mapping Your Life Across Time. Collins. ISBN 978-0-00-255619-4.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
  6. Erik H. Erikson, Joan M. Erikson, The Life Cycle Completed: Extended Version (W. W. Norton, 1998),
  7. "The Male Midlife Crisis". Psych Central.com. 2016-05-17.
  8. "APA PsycNet". psycnet.apa.org.
  9. "Why do men go through midlife crisis?". Psychology Today.
  10. Stern, Theodore A.; Fava, Maurizio; Wilens, Timothy E.; Rosenbaum, Jerrold F. (13 February 2015). Massachusetts General Hospital Comprehensive Clinical Psychiatry. Elsevier Health Sciences. ISBN 9780323328999 – via Google Books.
  11. "Warning Signs of a Midlife Crisis". Drphil.com.
  12. MedlinePlus. Minaker, K. L., Dugdale, D. C., III MD, & Zieve, D., MD. (2011)
  13. Bourgeois, F. John; Gehrig, Paola A.; Veljovich, Daniel S. (1 January 2005). Obstetrics and Gynecology Recall. Lippincott Williams & Wilkins. ISBN 9780781748797 – via Google Books.
  14. "Products - Data Briefs - Number 193 - March 2015". Cdc.gov. Retrieved 2016-06-15.
  15. "Merriam Webster Dictionary". Merriam-Webster.
  16. Scientific American MIND Magazine February 2009 article titled "Ask the Brains: Is the Midlife Crisis a Myth?" by David Almeida, professor of human development and family studies at Pennsylvania State University
  17. "The Individuation Process". www.soul-guidance.com.
  18. Newman, Barbara M.; Newman, Philip R. (2012). Development Through Life. Wadsworth. pp. 512–15.
  19. "Why Do Men Go Through a Midlife Crisis?". Psychology Today.
  20. Dutt, Anne Josephine; Wahl, Hans-Werner; Diehl, Manfred (March 28, 2018). "Awareness of Aging Processes". Oxford Research Encyclopedia of Psychology. doi:10.1093/acrefore/9780190236557.001.0001/acrefore-9780190236557-e-397.
  21. Sheehy, Gail (1 January 1996). New Passages: Mapping Your Life Across Time. Ballantine Books. ISBN 9780345404459 – via Internet Archive.
  22. Chandra, Prabha (June 2011). "Is midlife crisis for real?". Prevention India.
  23. Erikson, Erik H. (1968) Identity, Youth and Crisis. New York: Norton.

References
  • "Midlife Crisis? Lets break it down.", Seth Chernoff, Sunday, Oct 11, 2015.
  • Chandra, P. (2011, June 8). Is midlife crisis for real? : Prevention News - India Today. News - Latest News - Breaking News India - Live Update - India Today. Retrieved April 23, 2012
  • Psycnet.apa.org
  • Doheny, K.d (n.d.). Midlife Crisis: Depression or Normal Transition?. WebMD - Better information. Better health..
  • Sheehy, Gail (1996). New Passages: Mapping Your Life Across Time. Collins. ISBN 978-0-00-255619-4.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
  • Mid-Life Transition. (n.d.). DrWeil.com - Official Website of Andrew Weil, M.D
  • Massachusetts General Hospital Comprehensive Clinical Psychiatry at Google Books
  • Erik H. Erikson, Joan M. Erikson, The Life Cycle Completed: Extended Version (W. W. Norton, 1998)
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